exclusive
by ulstergirl
Summary: Saturday nights are the worst, when they're apart.


Saturday night.

Nancy had thought she would still be away, as a matter of fact. The case had been going terribly; she had been stuck at a standstill, had been desperate for leads, and she had thought she would be away right now.

But Saturday nights were the absolute worst, because they were time she would have been spending with him.

Her father was in Boston, at a conference; Hannah had gone to visit her sister, since she had expected the house to be otherwise empty. Nancy wandered through the rooms. Nothing was able to hold her attention for long.

They weren't broken up... but she wasn't sure what they were. People who weren't even in a relationship couldn't suddenly not be in one.

_He may not be your _boyfriend_, but you two are _definitely _in a relationship. _Bess had been so matter-of-fact about it. And Bess was envious, but she wasn't jealous or spiteful about it. She just wanted someone like Ned—or, more accurately, someone to treat her the way Ned treated Nancy. Most of the time, anyway.

Nancy went up to her bedroom to put away her notes about her latest case, then sat down on the bed. Hannah had made it up in her absence. The coverlet was smooth and perfect, the sheets freshly laundered, the carpet vacuumed. Everything put away, organized, and tidy. She had even, Nancy was heartbroken to see, dusted the large framed photo of Ned that was on Nancy's bedside table. Jokingly Bess had drawn a heart around his face, her fingertip trailing through the dust. Now the glass was shining.

Things had been so much simpler before. She would have just gotten into the Mustang and driven over to Ned's house. His parents had said she was still welcome to visit whenever she wanted, but she hadn't been able to bring herself to do it yet. Before, even if she was there and he wasn't, it would just be a matter of time before he would walk through the door again...

But now.

The kiss she had confessed had been completely unexpected, so unexpected that she had come within a second or two of slapping the guy who had kissed her. He had paid her attention, and she had been lonely. That was no excuse, but it was the truth, no matter how defensive she otherwise pretended to be. Still, she hadn't wanted things to go any further.

And she and Ned _weren't_ in a relationship. They dated, and he had been her exclusive date for a long time. Maybe in every other sense he really was her boyfriend, but neither of them had felt the need to put a name on it. Or maybe only she hadn't.

What hurt most was that Ned _hadn't_ yelled. He had just seemed... resigned. Disappointed. Nancy had never known that something could hurt like her father's disappointment did, until Ned was disappointed in her.

She had thrown herself into her next case, missing Ned even more. Her father was uncomfortable with her taking the trip to Emerson by herself, and none of her friends had been free to go with her yet. Ned would be home for Thanksgiving, but that felt like it was years away.

She missed him more than she had ever thought possible. To think that he was angry or upset at her was enough to make bile rise in her throat and tears sting in her eyes.

She glanced at the phone beside her bed. Ned called her when he was free, but it wasn't all that often; between schoolwork and football practice, he had been making new friends, some of them in a fraternity on campus that they had persuaded him to rush. Everything sounded so wonderful, so intense, for him. His life was moving on without her. There was no place for her while Ned was at Emerson.

The tears in her eyes spilled slowly down her cheeks.

If she could just see him, it would all go away, all the pain and loneliness she felt. And she was stronger than this; she didn't _need_ him to make her happy. It was just Saturday night, just the prospect of another six weeks without him.

But at least the sound of his voice would help.

She went to the bathroom and bathed her flushed face in cold water, blew her nose, so he wouldn't hear the choke of tears in her voice. She sat down at the edge of her bed and reached for her phone.

Her heart leaped with every trilled ring, and fell in the silence between. After eight rings, ten, twelve... he and his roommate were out. Omega Chi was doubtless full of beautiful college girls, and fraternity members encouraging Ned to have a good time. Ned was probably thinking of that kiss and asking himself why he couldn't do the same.

Nancy had just slowly hung up, feeling more miserable than ever, when she heard a car door slam outside. She glanced at her watch, then at her door, her eyebrows rising. Her father didn't expect to be back until tomorrow, and neither did Hannah, as far as Nancy knew. Maybe someone was visiting the Masters' house.

Then the doorbell rang.

Nancy flew down the stairs. Maybe Bess or George was coming over; at least that would help a little. She wouldn't give in to the desperate need to talk about Ned and her fears, that she had ruined everything, that Ned would find someone else...

When she glanced through the glass to see who was visiting, her heart gave a leap. She pulled open the door, painfully aware that she had to be hallucinating—

But she wasn't. Ned stood there, hands in his coat pockets, his gaze rising to meet hers. "I—"

Before she even realized it, Nancy was wrapping her arms around him, standing on tiptoe, releasing a quiet happy cry. Then Ned was sliding his arms around her too, holding her tight against him, and Nancy closed her eyes, relaxing for what felt like the first time in weeks.

"I can't believe you're here," she said, her voice muffled against his shoulder. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too," Ned said. "This four-hour drive is for the birds. I thought I could help on your case?"

She chuckled as she pulled back to look into his face. Another tear had escaped; she reached up to brush it away, only to find Ned gazing at her, his dark eyes sympathetic, reaching up too. She let him brush his thumb against her cheek and felt her chest tighten. He was here. He was really here.

"It's finished," she admitted. "Come in! Please, come in."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I couldn't get away." He shuffled inside a few steps, only walking toward the couch when she took his hand. She was so happy to see him that her heart ached with it.

"Do you want anything to drink? I can..."

Ned held up a hand, taking a deep breath. "If the case is finished, then I guess... there's something I've been needing to say, and I didn't want it to be over a telephone line."

For a moment, she almost couldn't breathe. She nodded, her gaze locked to him.

Maybe he couldn't break up with her, but he could say that he wanted to see other people. That he had started to see other people. _That_ thought made her suddenly, violently sick again. She just hoped her panic and fear weren't showing on her face.

"You can say no; I mean that. I... can we be exclusive? Like, not seeing other people exclusive?"

Her eyes filled with tears again. "Oh..."

"Not necessarily now, but—"

She nodded hard a few times. "Yes. I would love to."

She realized then that his expression had likely been just as anxious as she had felt, but at her words, a huge grin crossed his handsome face. "Really? I..."

She nodded again, and Ned wrapped her in his arms, releasing a delighted laugh. "I'm so glad," he murmured, his voice muffled, his lips pressed against her cheek. "I just... the past few weeks have been torture."

"Yeah," she whispered, holding him tight in return. Soon he would return to Emerson, and the edge of her loneliness would be whetted sharp by this visit, by what they had just said.

But not yet. And she had no intention of wasting it.


End file.
